Careful planning is key to successfully implementing GIS in the enterprise. Implementing GIS presents a unique set of challenges. Even the most well-funded projects can fail because of poor planning.

• Consider the strategic purpose.

When planning for a successful GIS, you must think first about what you want from it. Everything else you do comes from that vision to ensure that the GIS will ultimately work towards serving some useful and important purpose. Start by considering the strategic purpose of the organization within which the system will be developed. What are its goals, objectives, and mandates?. This stage of the planning ensures that the process and the final system fit within organizational context and truly support the strategic objectives of the organization. This stage also allows you to assess how information created by the GIS will impact the business strategy of the organization.

• Plan for the planning.

GIS planning should not be taken lightly. Forget about actually implementing a GIS for the moment. Just planning a GIS takes a commitment of resources and people.

Before you begin, you need to know that your organization understands the distinction between planning and implementing and that it is prepared to provide the resources needed to make the planning happen. Making the case means understanding what needs to be done and what it will take to get it done. The end result of this stage is a project proposal that makes that case and explicitly seeks approval to launch the formal planning process.

Commitment to the planning process is essential to a successful GIS implementation, especially in municipal government agencies and other public-sector organizations. The project proposal helps to secure the political commitment to the planning process. This is the moment to introduce the GIS planning process to the most senior executives of your organization. Arrange to keep them fully informed of the planning progress. If you receive approval for your planning project and a commitment of resources at this point, your chances of having a successful GIS are high.

• Determine technology requirements.

Once you have the approval for your project plan, the in-house GIS planning team can be activated. Defining the specific GIS requirements is the primary task in the planning process. You must meet with your customers or clients (those who will use the system or use the output from the system) to begin gathering specifics about the actual requirements from the user's perspective.

A highly effective method of soliciting input on the needs of your organization is to hold one or more in-house technology seminars.

In addition to its information-gathering purpose, the technology seminar is also an ideal opportunity for you to explain to key personnel the nature of GIS, its potential benefits, and the planning process itself. By involving stakeholders at this early stage, you help to ensure participation in the subsequent planning work ahead so that all participants will appreciate the scope of the planning process. The technology seminar is also the place where initial identification of information products begins.

• Determine the end products.

Once the information products have been described, you can begin to define the scope of the entire system. This involves determining what data to acquire, when it will be needed, and the data volumes that need to be handled. This includes assessing the probable timing of the production of the information products. It may become clear that it will be possible to use one input data source to generate more than one information product, and this can now be built into your development program. Each refinement helps clarify your needs and increases your chance of success.

• Define the system scope.

Once the information products have been described, you can begin to define the scope of the entire system. This involves determining what data to acquire, when it will be needed, and the data volumes that need to be handled. This includes assessing the probable timing of the production of the information products. It may become clear that it will be possible to use one input data source to generate more than one information product, and this can now be built into your development program. Each refinement helps clarify your needs and increases your chance of success.

• Create a data design.

In GIS, data is a major factor because spatial data is a relatively complicated thing. In the conceptual system design phase of the planning process, you review the requirements identified in the earlier stages and use them to begin developing database design.

A good GIS project plan includes collaboration and an iterative approach to database design. Designing the conceptual, logical, and physical structure of the database will involve input from key people including project managers, subject matter experts, and technical

• Choose a data model.

A logical data model describes those parts of the real world that concern your organization. The database may be simple or complex but must fit together in a logical manner so that you can easily retrieve the data you need and efficiently carry out the analysis tasks required.

There are several options available for your system's database design. The advantages and disadvantages of each approach are covered in Thinking About GIS. You should also consider data accuracy, update requirements, error tolerance, and data standards at this stage, as these issues will affect system design.

• Determine system requirements.

The system requirements stage is where you examine the system functions and user interface needed, along with the interface, communications, hardware, and software requirements. This should be the first time in the planning process that you examine software and hardware products.

By reviewing the information product descriptions, you will summarize the functions needed to produce them. Issues of interface design, effective communications (particularly in distributed systems), and appropriate hardware and software configurations should also be considered during this planning phase.

• Analyze benefits and costs.

Following conceptual system design, you need to work out the best way to implement the system you have designed. This is where you plan how the system will be taken from the planning stage to actual implementation. You may also need to conduct a benefit-cost analysis to make your business case for the system.

Until now, the focus of the planning methodology has been on what you need to put in place to meet your requirements. The focus at this stage switches to how to put the system in place”an acquisition plan. Issues such as institutional interactions, legal matters, existing legacy hardware and software, security, staffing, and training are addressed at this stage.

The acquisition plan that results from this stage of the planning process will contain your implementation strategy and benefit-cost analysis. This plan can be used both to secure funding for your system and as a guide for the actual implementation of the system.

• Make an implementation plan.

The final report equips you with all the information you need to implement a successful GIS. It will become your GIS planning book to help you through the implementation process. Developing the final report should be the result of a process of communication between the GIS team and management, so that no parts of the report come as a surprise to anyone.

The report should contain a review of the organization's strategic business objectives, the information requirements study, details of the conceptual system design, recommendations for implementation, time planning issues, and funding alternatives.

The purpose of Thinking About GIS is to guide you through those stages in your thinking. It will give senior executives the context for questions they must ask about GIS in their organization, and it will tell new GIS managers how to answer those questions.

All deployment situations are unique. To ensure the greatest chance of success, it is important that you understand all the stages outlined before adapting the methodology to your needs.